Jagaran Chakma

Business leaders call for emergency measures to cut gas use in power generation, divert more LNG to factories

Higher power tariffs, gas shortages and discounts are putting pressure on margins as construction activity slows

By 8am, when Jesmin Alam’s maid arrives at her home in Uttara’s Sector-3 to prepare the day’s meals, the gas burner often lies useless.

Invest Bangladesh, the newly formed apex investment authority, plans to offer the first batch of five to seven idle state-owned assets, including closed factories, to private investors through open bidding in October, a top official said yesterday.

A shampoo sachet used to be the manufacturer’s problem only until it left the shop. Once a customer bought it, the company’s responsibility effectively ended. The empty sachet then went into a bin, a drain or simply onto the street, with no clear obligation on the maker to deal with what happened next.

Bangladesh’s energy crisis is costing the industrial sector up to Tk 2,387 crore a day in lost economic output as factories continue to face supply disruptions, according to an estimate by the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI).

Weak demand amid slower construction activity, excess production capacity, rising production costs and cheaper imports are putting growing pressure on the country’s float glass manufacturers, squeezing their profit margins.

The government has reduced the board size of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) from 80 to 48 members, tightened election rules and increased membership and affiliation fees through amendments to the Trade Organization Rules, 2025.